


Whumptober 2020 - No.4 Running Out Of Time

by Jakkuor



Series: Whumptober 2020 [4]
Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game)
Genre: got the whole party in this one!, hafnear rolled a 1
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:15:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26825734
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jakkuor/pseuds/Jakkuor
Series: Whumptober 2020 [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1948606
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	Whumptober 2020 - No.4 Running Out Of Time

The four of them are making their way through an underground corridor. It’s wide enough for them to walk in pairs. Pelwe’s always preferred Kassandra’s shoulder though, so that’s where they ride, clipped onto her armor. Hafnear and Ilith are just ahead of them. This place smells old and musty, like rotted wood. They’ve been in plenty of creepy places before, but it’s less the creepiness that makes her wary and more the lack of structural integrity - there are all sorts of creaks and rumbling sounds as the building above them seems to shift and, every so often, dust will rain down from a crack in the ceiling. 

“What d’you think, Pelwe? Sense anything?” Kass glances at the deidau on her shoulder.

They close their eyes and concentrate for a few seconds, nose and ears twitching, then shake their head, “Nothin’.”

“I don’t smell anything, either… Think this place might really be abandoned.”

“Boo. I was itching for a fight.” Ilith’s shoulders sag.

“We can spar when we’re done here, if you really want,” Kass offers. She’s been wanting a rematch after losing their arm wrestle. She plans on winning the next one.

“Fuck. Yes.”

Kassandra grins. It’ll be fun to go all out in a proper sparring session. It’s been  _ so long _ since she’s been able to. “We can-”

There is a crack - much louder than any of the other sounds - from somewhere above them and the whole room begins to shake. Rocks and pieces of the ceiling start to come loose and fall all around them, filling the already somewhat narrow space.

“Shit. Run!” Kass yells, breaking into a sprint. 

Ilith takes off, but Hafnear just stands there, eyes wide and jaw agape.

“Hafnear!”

For a split second, she’s looking at a different young man frozen in terror - tall and lanky, blue eyes and brown hair - and she shakes herself out of it. Now’s not the time for memory lane.

“Sorry, Pelwe,” she says hurriedly, unclipping the deidau from her armor and chucks them down the hall. They’ll be fine; they have a feather fall ability and about ninety percent of their combat situations have involved her throwing them. She doubles back for Hafnear and grabs him by the arm.

He looks up at her, eyes blank.

“We have to  _ go! _ ” She tugs him along and, once he starts to move on his own, shoves him ahead of her. 

Kassandra’s about ready to throw him over her shoulder and carry him the rest of the way out when a wall comes crumbling down on top of her. It’s like, well, being hit by a brick wall. She falls to the ground and cries out, trying her best to protect her head from any more debris. Her body aches from the impact and she doesn’t dare move until all the rumbling and shaking has stopped. 

Her armor’s likely protected her from the worst of it, but everything aside from her head and neck hurts. But she’s pinned, rubble piled up on top of her. It’s a little hard to breathe, and panic begins to claw its way up her throat. She pushes it down; panicking will only make this worse. She has to focus, has to figure out a way out of this. Her arms are free, thank the gods, but she’s cut off from the rest of the group.

“Guys?” Kass calls out, coughing as she inhales a bunch of dust.

“Kassandra? Are you okay?” Hafnear is the one to answer.

“I’m… mostly okay! But I’m stuck. Are you all okay?”

“Yeah, we’re alright!” Ilith answers. “You sit tight, yeah? We’re gonna get you out.”

“Not much else I can do so…” she mutters. 

Part of her  _ wants _ to try and move her legs, to see how bad the damage to her body is, but she’s worried that might cause everything else to shift and fall. And that’s the last thing they need. So, instead, she does her best to keep her breathing steady and from fidgeting too much.

It’s mostly quiet, save for the grunts of the other three working their way through the rubble to get to her. The minutes seem to drag on, and the aches plaguing Kassandra’s body grow worse. She grits her teeth; Hafnear’ll be able to fix her up but until he can get to her, it’s going to hurt like a bitch. 

Finally,  _ finally,  _ a fallen beam in front of her is shifted, then pulled away. Ilith peers down at her and grins.

“Found ya! Now just give us another second…”  
“Yeah, yeah, take your time. No rush or anything,” Kass replies dryly.

The debris in front of her is quickly cleared away between her and Pelwe. Kassandra’s… not entirely sure how the two foot deidau is making rocks and beams float away, but she’s really not going to complain. With them, she’s learned to stop questioning things.

“Alright, Pelwe, you lift up the stuff on top of her and I’ll pull her out,” Ilith says. She stoops down and grabs Kass’ hands. “Brace yourself. This’ll suck.”

Pelwe nods and steps forward, “Got it.”

Kassandra tenses, ready to help once she’s free. Pelwe makes the chunk on top of her float upwards - she’s never been so pleased to take a proper breath before - and Ilith tugs her forward. Both wince at the scrape of metal on stone, but she’s free! Pelwe gently lowers the rubble back onto the ground.

“Th-Thanks, guys,” Kass pants.

“No prob!” 

Now free, Kassandra’s pretty sure nothing’s broken. She accepts Ilith’s offer to help her up, raising unsteadily to her feet, and her legs just about give way. The half-dragonborn catches her and steadies her, pulling one arm over her shoulders.

“Here,” Hafnear presses one hand to her shoulder and mutters something in Infernal. Kass is bathed in a golden light and warmth, and her pain vanishes entirely.

She’s able to straighten up and stand on her own, letting go of Ilith. “Thank you, Hafnear,” she nods to him.

“Well, it was kinda my fault you got hurt…” he looks to the floor, guilty.

Kassandra shakes her head, “It’s fine. You would’ve been way worse off if it had been you under there.” She glances back at the now blocked hallway behind them. “We should keep moving. Don’t wanna risk getting buried again.”

The others voice their agreement and, once Pelwe’s settled back on her shoulder, they press on.


End file.
